1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to printing on a variable form media and more particularly relates to printing relocatable print data on the variable form media.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many printed documents include variable form media (“VFM”) such as tab pages or page dividers in addition to standard printed pages. VFM has a variety of physical configurations, many with a tab extending beyond the dimensions of a document's standard printed pages. Text information printed on the tab may identify the tab section to a reader without the reader opening the document. VFM is effective for organizing and demarking the sections of a printed document. A document will often have multiple VFMs, each with a unique physical configuration. The unique physical configuration of each VFM often requires that the text information be printed in a unique print target location that is different from one or more other VFM in the document.
Many printers include feed mechanisms that support the printing of the VFM along with the standard printed pages of a document, automatically printing and collating VFM into a document as the rest of the document is printed. Unfortunately, setting up the source document to print on VFM is often inconvenient. The print targets for text information differ among the different physical configurations of VFM. For example, each tab in a set of tab pages typically has a unique print target location. To print on a tab page VFM, a user must create a tab page within the document for each tab and specify the tab text and format at the print target position and orientation of the tab. Thus the user must determine the appropriate tab location and enter specific spatial print data in order to print the VFM in sequence with standard printed pages.
FIG. 1a illustrates a set of VFM 100 of the current practice. The set of VFM 100 includes one or more VFM 105, one or more tabs 110, and one or more print targets 115. The set of VFM 100 demarks one or more sections of a document with page stock, text, and images that are visible without opening the document.
The set of VFM 100 typically includes one or more VFM 105, each with a unique physical configuration. Each VFM 105 may include one or more tabs 110 and one or more print areas 115. Although the set of VFM 100 is shown with three VFM 105 with one tab 110 and one print target 115 each, any number of VFM 105, tabs 110, and print targets 115 may be included in the set of VRM 100. Text information such as text and images are typically printed in the print target 115 of each VFM 105 to identify the section of the document demarked by the VFM 105.
FIG. 1b illustrates print data 125 of the current practice. Text information 135 specifies the text and images to be printed, as well as the fonts and the relationships of text and images of the text information 135. The text information 135 does not specify the position, orientation, or dimensions the text and images will occupy on a printed page. Information specifying the position of the text information 135 may be added to create positioned print data 140. Orientation information may also be added to the text information 135 to create oriented print data 145. In addition, dimension information may be added to the text information 135 to create dimensioned print data 150. Spatial print data 155 combines text information 135, position information, orientation information, and dimension information to specify the printing of the text information 135 on the VFM 105.
FIG. 1c is a flow chart illustrating a VFM printing method 160 of the current practice. The VFM printing method 160 prints text information 135 to a VFM 105 such as a tab page. The VFM printing method 160 creates 165 a source page. The source page describes the VFM 105 text information 135 as spatial print data 155 within a print target 115 on the VFM 105. The VFM printing method 160 inserts 170 the correct VFM 105 into a printer. The VFM 105 is typically placed in a separate paper feed distinct from the paper feed used for standard printing paper.
The VFM printing method 160 subsequently prints 175 the source page on the VFM 105. The printer feeds the VFM 105 from the paper feed into a print engine and prints the source page onto the VFM 105. If the print target 115 of the VFM 105 does not match the spatial print data 155 of the source page, the VFM 105 will be incorrectly printed and may be useless for organizing the document.
The VFM 105 printing method 160 requires a user to create a source page that describes the position, orientation, and dimensions of text information 135 at a print target 115 on the VFM 105. Unfortunately, the VFM 105 printing method 160 cannot properly describe text information 135 if the user does not know the physical configuration of each VFM 105 in a final document. For example, a source page may be created by placing text in the print target 115b of the tab 10b positioned five centimeters (5 cm) below the top of the VFM 105b. Yet if the printer prints the source page on the VFM 105c with the print target 115c of the tab 110c positioned ten centimeters (10 cm) below the top of the VFM 105c, the text information 135 of the source page will not be printed within the print target 115c because there will be no media in the tab 110b to print upon. The text information 135 can only be printed on the VFM 105b with the tab 110b positioned five centimeters (5 cm) below the top of the VFM 105b. 
The document in the VFM printing method 160 would also not print correctly if the user created the source document directed to one or more VFM 105 with a first type of physical configuration, such as a set of VFM 100 with six-centimeter (6 cm) tabs, then attempted to print the source document on one or more VFM 105 with an alternate physical configuration, such as a set of VFM 100 with five-centimeter (5 cm) tabs. The printer would attempt to print the spatial print data 155 of the source pages in the print targets 115 for the six-centimeter (6 cm) tabs, printing the spatial print data 155 in areas inappropriate for five-centimeter (5 cm) tabs
Consequently, a need exists for a process, apparatus, and system that create relocatable print data from text information 135 directed to a VFM 105. What is further needed are a process, apparatus, and system that calculate spatial print data 155 directed to a print target 115 of the VFM 105. Beneficially, such a process, apparatus, and system would allow a user to define the printed content of the VFM 105 independent of any proceeding or succeeding VFM 105, or the physical configuration of the VFM 105.